(Photo via Nicole Mullen/WCSN)
Coming off a 2-1 series loss against Cal this past weekend, ASU Softball looks to recover, as they host No. 9 Washington for a three game series at Farrington after a seven-game road trip.
Arizona State (18-10, 2-4) has lost seven of its last 10 games, with its main problem being messy defensive play and a low-scoring offense. The team hopes to correct course and pick up its first Pac-12 Conference series win this weekend against Washington (25-6, 6-3).
The history between these conference foes dates all the way back to 1993. The Sun Devils have won 29 out of their last 52 games against the Huskies, with two of those wins coming from their matchups last year.
However, it’s likely that the Washington Huskies will make it hard for the Sun Devils this season. Batting .311 as a team with a .925 on-base percentage and a .529 team slugging percentage. They’re also hot coming off a series sweep at home against Arizona.
The Huskies have nine batters hitting over .300 with the highest being fifth-year infielder Baylee Klingler. On the season, Klinlger has a .431 average with a total of 44 hits and 28 runs all of which leads the Huskies. She also leads with a 1.282 on-base percentage. Washington freshman catcher Sydney Stewart and fifth-year outfielder Sami Reynolds also add to Washington’s consistency .359 and .341 averages, respectively. To make the Huskies’ lineup look even better, fifth-year outfielder Madison Huskey leads her team with 10 home runs and is coming off a Pac-12 Player of the Week performance.
The prowess of these individuals culminates in one of the most potent offenses in the Pac-12. They’ve scored 10 or more runs seven times this season and have totaled 202 runs so far. ASU’s pitching staff will have to find a way improve upon its 2.78 combined ERA in order to cool down Washington’s bats, and avoid losing.
Washington’s pitchers also holds their own, totaling a 2.46 ERA. Their best arm comes from freshman right-handed pitcher Ruby Meylan, who has nine complete games under her belt and a 12-2 record.
As for the Sun Devils, they seem to have lost their spark from the beginning of the season. Their main weaknesses as of late has been errors and stranding runners in scoring position. Heading into this weekend, the Sun Devils have committed a Pac-12-high 37 errors many of them allowing unearned runs.
With only 17 runs in the past ten games, including five shutouts, ASU’s offense will need to find a way to make contact and score more runners if they want to be able to keep up with the Huskies.
If the Sun Devils want to improve their 5-10 record against winning teams and build on their win from Sunday, they’ll have to get out of the slump they seem to have fallen into.
